My family? We’re music people. I’ve mentioned in a previous article that my mom took me to see Elvis Costello when I was but a babe and my dad took me to see Bob Dylan for my sixteenth birthday and the Rolling Stones just ’cause. My dad also made me travel from London to Liverpool with him to go on the official Beatles “Magical Mystery Tour,” which is basically the equivalent of the double decker busses that tourists take around Los Angeles to gawk at celebrities houses. Now I have a legitimate photo of myself in front of Strawberry Fields, so there. I saw the Beastie Boys, The Fugees and Dave Matthews Band when it wasn’t embarrassing to say you loved Dave Matthews Band. But on Saturday night Arcade Fire may have treated me to the best performance of my life at The Forum in Inglewood. I think I wore my best concert outfit to date, too.
It’s always tricky as a lady to figure what to wear to hear live music. It has to be comfy enough to dance in but special enough you won’t bat an eye paying $20 for a Makers Mark. We don’t want to be hot, we don’t want to be cold, and we definitely don’t want our toes getting smooshed by a stranger. A concert isn’t an occasion to dress fancier (although Win Butler does suggest that people wear formal attire or costumes to his shows) but it’s also not when you want to wear jeans and a t-shirt. Let’s be honest, music is sexy. At concerts I want to push the envelope without it turning into Halloween.
I went with a see-through Stella and Jamie top with an open back and black bra underneath. I totes get the inclination to go nude with the underthings when you’re wearing something transparent but I prefer to be less subtle when it comes to visible undergarments. I also wore scalloped shorts from Lulu’s and D’Orsay flats from Just Fab, not exactly army boots but also not open toed sandals.
Before I headed inside I emptied my cross body bag of any superfluous contents while in the parking lot. There’s nothing worse than trying to dance while holding a heavy bag, and besides, with parking at the Forum costing an astounding $25 why not turn your space into your own personal green room.
More columns for L.A. Mag